Anne Hillman

An Investigation of Occupational Role Performance in Men over Sixty Years of Age, Following a Stroke.

Abstract Life roles can be seen as social, cultural and occupational roles. Occupational roles are patterns of self maintenance, work, leisure and rest activities that are done on a regular basis and are strongly associated with social cultural roles. Occupational role performance is the way that activities linked to these roles are carried out. It is proposed that occupational role performance has a direct relationship to lifestyle and health issues. Very little is known about the occupational roles of the elderly, and nothing is known about the way elderly people who have had a stroke organise their daily activities following discharge from rehabilitation programs. The purpose of this study was to gather information about the self‐perceived occupational role performance profiles of elderly men who have had a stroke and are living at home. This information will be utilised in subsequent research into factors that influence occupational role performance in the elderly. Although role assessment instruments...

Experiencing rights within positive, person-centred support networks of people with intellectual disability in Australia.

BACKGROUND This research describes issues related to human rights as they arose within the everyday lives of people in nine personal support networks that included adult Australians with an intellectual disability (ID). METHOD The research was part of a wider 3-year ethnographic study of nine personal support networks. A major criterion for recruitment was that people in these networks were committed to actively developing the positive, meaningful future of an adult family member with an ID. Data were collected from November 2007 to March 2011 via interviews, participant observations and analysed within the framework of situational analysis. Findings were checked with network members. RESULTS The issue of rights was challenging to network members. Subtle rights violations could have a major impact on an individual with a disability. Network members worked to protect the rights of people with ID by building and maintaining an empathic and respectful support network, developing the persons self-confidence and autonomy and ensuring that the person with an ID was an active member of the personal support network. CONCLUSION The maintenance of rights within a supportive environment remains a difficult task. It can be facilitated by a deep knowledge and respect for the person being supported, the promotion of his or her active participation in the planning and provision of support, and an experimental and reflective approach.

The dynamics of support over time in the intentional support networks of nine people with intellectual disability

This paper describes the dynamics of support observed in the networks of nine adults with intellectual disability, developed by families who had committed to achieving a ‘good life’ for this person. Network members, including the person with a disability, participated in this longitudinal ethnographic study. Three principles that underpinned their work were positive and respectful relationships, mentorship and providing opportunities and expectations. Participants worked actively with other network members to develop higher levels of autonomy and social participation.